Does anyone else notice a big drop in fuel economy when using the air conditioning? For people with automatic climate control do you ever manually turn off the air conditioner?

In all my SUVs with the auto climate control, I have tested just that thought and barely got a 10th of MPG more driving with it off. Maybe due to the big V8 engines I have and the AWD system, turning off the AC auto climate control does not seem to make a difference. Even in my Daughters 99 Durango 4x4 with the 5.9L V8 on or off makes no real difference in how it consumes gas it would seem.

1 minute ago, Robert Hall said:

Probably...don't know, don't care. When I need A/C, I use it.

I know in my parents Delta 98 Station wagon when we went to visit relatives in LA, we would turn off the AC going over the Grapvine into LA as it made a noticable difference on MPG plus over all power and I think this was a real issue on 70's and 80's auto's. Now with the big powerful engines and use of more electric assist parts, I do not see any difference on either a true 4x4 or AWD auto's.

I know in my parents Delta 98 Station wagon when we went to visit relatives in LA, we would turn off the AC going over the Grapvine into LA as it made a noticable difference on MPG plus over all power and I think this was a real issue on 70's and 80's auto's.

I remember that with my diesel Escort and my Bronco II..gutless wonders on hills w/ the A/C on. With the Bronco II was particularly noticeable in Colorado..it was scary slow on steep sections on I-70 in the mountains...

IN my Equinox,, it starts chugging gas like college kids at a frat party....

See, this is my experience too in my Encore. The A/C seems to be causing more drag on the engine than in other cars. Using A/C is the difference between up to a 4mpg difference for me.

I just did a Pittsburgh - DC - NJ - NYC - Philly - Pittsburgh trip. On some of the legs, it was cool enough outside that I was able to just use the vents and manually turn off the A/C. My fuel economy went up to 34mpg on those legs. When I had to use A/C, it would drop to around 30. This is off the DIC of course.

I kept it at the speed limit pretty much the whole trip as I already know that my MPGs drop a lot above 70 mph.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

See, this is my experience too in my Encore. The A/C seems to be causing more drag on the engine than in other cars. Using A/C is the difference between up to a 4mpg difference for me.

I just did a Pittsburgh - DC - NJ - NYC - Philly - Pittsburgh trip. On some of the legs, it was cool enough outside that I was able to just use the vents and manually turn off the A/C. My fuel economy went up to 34mpg on those legs. When I had to use A/C, it would drop to around 30. This is off the DIC of course.

I kept it at the speed limit pretty much the whole trip as I already know that my MPGs drop a lot above 70 mph.

Yep, noticed that on my first trek with the Equinox as well. Even driving it times, it would creep to 35mpg. Threw on the air on our first warm day, and it dropped all the way down to 28.

The only other car I saw a decent drop with the AC on was my old S10......

Similar Content

The Trump Administration and the EPA officials have scrapped all further talks with California and canceled the $929 million in federal funds for a California high-speed rail project.
California's Governor has responded that this is in response to California leading a 16 state coalition challenge to President Trump's national emergency to take funds from the defense department and apply it to building a wall from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean.
California has already filed suit to block the Trump administration proposal to roll back federal fuel economy targets for 2022-2025.
CARB Chair Mary Nichols is on record that they are willing to work with the auto industry in giving more flexibility to comply with the greenhouse gas limits. This came as the White house administration instructed the EPA to break off talks before Christmas and have not responded to any suggested areas of compromise by California and the 19 states they are representing nor the auto industry suggestions for compromise.
While FCA declined to comment, GM and the Alliance for Automobile Manufacturers did not respond to a request for comment. Ford has stated they are very disappointed in the failure of continued talks. Joe Hinrichs, Ford's president of global operations said in a statement: "The auto industry needs regulatory certainty, not protracted litigation."
The auto industry is on record as opposing freezing the emissions / fuel efficiency standards to 2020 levels but also want relief from the roughly 5 percent annual carbon reduction targets for all vehicle classes fuel efficiency.

The Trump Administration and the EPA officials have scrapped all further talks with California and canceled the $929 million in federal funds for a California high-speed rail project.
California's Governor has responded that this is in response to California leading a 16 state coalition challenge to President Trump's national emergency to take funds from the defense department and apply it to building a wall from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean.
California has already filed suit to block the Trump administration proposal to roll back federal fuel economy targets for 2022-2025.
CARB Chair Mary Nichols is on record that they are willing to work with the auto industry in giving more flexibility to comply with the greenhouse gas limits. This came as the White house administration instructed the EPA to break off talks before Christmas and have not responded to any suggested areas of compromise by California and the 19 states they are representing nor the auto industry suggestions for compromise.
While FCA declined to comment, GM and the Alliance for Automobile Manufacturers did not respond to a request for comment. Ford has stated they are very disappointed in the failure of continued talks. Joe Hinrichs, Ford's president of global operations said in a statement: "The auto industry needs regulatory certainty, not protracted litigation."
The auto industry is on record as opposing freezing the emissions / fuel efficiency standards to 2020 levels but also want relief from the roughly 5 percent annual carbon reduction targets for all vehicle classes fuel efficiency.

Ford is launching an investigation into its own emissions and fuel economy certification process according to a statement released by the company. The issue was brought to light back in September when a number of employees reported concerns through Ford's internal Speak Up channel.
The concern surrounds Road Load, a vehicle-specific resistance level used in dynamometer testing. Too much or too little resistance will alter the results of the emissions and fuel economy. Road load is determined through engineering estimates that are then validated on the track. Ford is evaluating changes to the road load determination process.
The company is quick to point out that none of the potential concerns involve the use of defeat devices and that no determination has been made on the need to restate Ford's fuel economy or emissions labels.
Ford has hired an outside firm to conduct an investigation into Ford's current processes and has shared their findings with both the EPA and CARB.
The first vehicle to be re-evaluated is the 2019 Ford Ranger with others to follow.

Ford is launching an investigation into its own emissions and fuel economy certification process according to a statement released by the company. The issue was brought to light back in September when a number of employees reported concerns through Ford's internal Speak Up channel.
The concern surrounds Road Load, a vehicle-specific resistance level used in dynamometer testing. Too much or too little resistance will alter the results of the emissions and fuel economy. Road load is determined through engineering estimates that are then validated on the track. Ford is evaluating changes to the road load determination process.
The company is quick to point out that none of the potential concerns involve the use of defeat devices and that no determination has been made on the need to restate Ford's fuel economy or emissions labels.
Ford has hired an outside firm to conduct an investigation into Ford's current processes and has shared their findings with both the EPA and CARB.
The first vehicle to be re-evaluated is the 2019 Ford Ranger with others to follow.

When the Ford Ranger returns to the US market in a few weeks, the EPA window sticker will be a primary strong selling point. The EPA estimates for the Ranger have been announced and it beats any other gasoline powered pickup on the market. The two-wheel drive Ranger will have a 21mpg city / 26 highway / 23 combined rating. That combined rating ties the combined rating of the diesel-powered Chevy Colorado. The 4wd model gets a 20 city / 24 highway / 22 combined rating of which the city and combined rating are the highest in the class. The Ranger starts around $25,395 and offers only one engine, a 2.3 liter 4-cylinder, that will tow and haul more than the V6 offerings from Nissan, Toyota, and Ford.
The U.S. mid-size truck market is heating up with Ranger as just the newest entry in the mix. The 2020 Jeep Gladiator will be arriving next year but has not yet been rated by the EPA.